The U.S. Postal Service said Monday nearly 100% of completed mail ballots were returned to election offices within a week for this year’s presidential contest, despite hurricanes, some misdirected election mail and delivery concerns raised by state officials. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said postal workers processed more than 99 million general election ballots — making extra deliveries and collections and working to identify problems that could lead to incorrect deliveries. They also ensured ballots were delivered even after hurricanes brought devastation to parts of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina just weeks before Election Day, he said.

The search for five people believed to be aboard a fishing vessel that capsized in rough seas in the Gulf of Alaska has been suspended, the Coast Guard said Monday. The search lasted nearly a day and covered more than 108 square nautical miles. “We stand in sorrow and solidarity with the friends and family of the people we were not able to find over the past 24 hours,” Chief Warrant Officer James Koon, a search and rescue mission coordinator at Coast Guard Sector Southeast Alaska, said in a statement. The Coast Guard began the search after the Wind Walker’s crew sent a Mayday call at 12:10 a.m. Sunday that the 50-foot (15-meter) boat was overturning off Point Couverden, southwest of Juneau.

By Rabbi Yair Hoffman for the Sefas Tamim Foundation QUESTION: Company X owns a competitive website to Company Y.  Can company X purchase on GoDaddy (or any other domain platform) an alternative but very similar name to Company Y and redirect it to their own website?  For example, if Company Y owned CompanyY.org can Company X buy CompanyY.com? ANSWER: The prohibition of Gneivas Da’as – deceptive behavior – strikes at the very heart of the Torah’s mandate for ethical conduct, and its implications are both profound and far-reaching. The great sage Shmuel’s declaration in Chullin 94a is unequivocal: this prohibition knows no boundaries between Jew and Gentile, establishing a universal ethical standard that speaks to the very essence of human interaction.

Antitrust enforcers with the Federal Trade Commission have opened a wide-ranging investigation into Microsoft’s business practices, starting a big legal project that an incoming Trump administration must take up or abandon. The FTC is investigating Microsoft’s cloud computing business and related product lines such as artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, according to a person who was not authorized to discuss details of the investigation publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. It’s the latest action of more than three years of aggressive antitrust enforcement shepherded by FTC Chair Lina Khan, who was elevated to lead the agency by President Joe Biden after he came into office pledging tougher scrutiny of monopolistic behavior by Big Tech companies.

A top Federal Reserve official said Monday that he is leaning toward supporting an interest rate cut when the Fed meets in two weeks but that evidence of persistent inflation before then could cause him to change that view. Speaking at George Washington University, Christopher Waller, a key member of the Fed’s Board of Governors, said he was confident that inflation is headed lower and that the central bank will likely keep reducing its key rate, which affects many consumer and business loans. But he noted that there’s a risk that inflation “may be getting stuck above” the Fed’s 2% target, which would support an argument for keeping the Fed’s rate unchanged this month.

Louis Har, who was rescued from the heart of Rafah in a heroic operation by Yamam special forces after 129 days in captivity, appeared on Shneor Webber’s Melting Pot podcast and shared his harrowing experience in Hamas captivity and personal awakening. “My views have changed a lot from October 6 until today,” Har said. “I don’t trust any of them. I know that in some way, everyone in Gaza is involved. They were born to hate. They are given weapons when they are babies. They’re happy to sacrifice their children to kill Jews. That’s how they live.” “To achieve dialogue and coexistence, several generations of proper education in which hatred isn’t taught need to pass. That does not exist. There is no one to talk to.

The United States and the United Arab Emirates have been exploring the possibility of lifting sanctions on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in exchange for a significant shift in his alliances, according to five sources familiar with the discussions. Reuters reports that the proposed deal hinges on Assad severing ties with Iran and halting the flow of weapons to Lebanon’s Hezbollah. The dialogue between Washington and Abu Dhabi has gained momentum in recent months, fueled by the looming expiration of extensive U.S. sanctions on Syria on December 20. This initiative is also intertwined with Israel’s escalating efforts to counteract Tehran’s regional influence, including its backing of Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, and Iranian military assets in Syria.

Israel has significantly expanded its control over the central Gaza Strip, particularly around the Netzarim Corridor,  suggesting that the IDF is preparing for a prolonged presence within the Palestinian enclave, according to a report by The New York Times. Citing satellite images and video footage, the report indicates that the IDF has constructed or expanded approximately a dozen military bases in the area over the past three months. An IDF spokesman responded to the report, saying that “anything that has been built there can be taken down within a day.” Initially, the Netzarim Corridor consisted of a narrow, four-mile strip of land centered around a road south of Gaza City.

Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland announced Monday that he will run to become the top Democrat on the powerful House Judiciary Committee next year, directly challenging fellow Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler as the party prepares to fight a second Trump administration and an emboldened Republican majority. “House Democrats must stand in the breach to defend the principles and institutions of constitutional democracy,” Raskin wrote in a letter to colleagues. “That is our historic assignment now.

A defense lawyer asked jurors to put themselves in frightened subway riders’ shoes Monday at the trial of a Marine veteran charged with choking an irate, homeless man to death after an outburst on a New York underground train. Prosecutors countered that Daniel Penny was way too forceful and reckless in responding to Jordan Neely. Both sides gave closing arguments Monday at Penny’s trial on manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide charges. Penny, who gripped Neely’s neck for about six minutes, claims he was defending fellow passengers. He has pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors say Penny was justified in using some physical force after Neely shouted in a crowded train about being willing to die, willing to go jail or — as Penny and some other passengers recalled — willing to kill.